Sheet-transferring mechanism for printing presses



March 10, 1931. c. F. ROOT 1,795,971 v SHEET TRANSFERRING MCHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES I original Filed oct. 1s, 192s 11 sheets-sheet 1 ATToRA/Ex/.Sl

March 10, 1931. c, F, ROOT f 1,795,971

Y SHEET TRANSFERRING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES original Filed oct. 15. 1923 11 Sheets-Sheet 2 /N VENTO@ @Izar/.5 ve? By Ocuu ATToRNEx/,sf

March 10, 1931. C. p .RQQT 1395,97]

l SHEET TRANSFERRING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES Original Filed Oct. 13 1925 ll Sheets-Sheet 3 v 5 228 INVENToR.

A TTORNEY' 'jjMarch 1/0, l1931.

c. F. RooT 1,795,971

SHEET TRANSFERRING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES I l l1 Sheets-Sheet 4 Original Filed'oct. 13; 1925 I INVENTOR. eres .7.4 Foo z" ATToRlvEx/.sl

C. FA ROOT March 10, 1931.

SHEET TRANSFERRING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES l1 Sheets-Sheet 5 original Filedvoct. 15, 1925 INVENToR. @Izar/f5 f4 Hoef BY 9a7,

Mvg@

ATToRNEx/S' t c. F. ROOT 1,795,971

SHEET TRANSFERRING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES March l0, 1,931.

Original Filed Oct. 11 Sheets-Sheet 6 l INVENTOR. dgfeffgao ATTORNEYJ. 1

March 10, 1931. C;i ROOT SHEET TRNSFERRING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES origirial Filed oct. 15, 1925 ll Sheets-Sheet '7 ATTORNEYS E March l0, 1931. c. F. ROOT E 1,795,971

SHEET TRANSEEERING MECEANISM Foa PRINTING PREssEs origina Filed out. 1s 1923 11 sheets-sheet e Irl Ill/lll l EXW INV EN TOR.

ATTORNEYJ c. F. Roo-r 1,795,971

SHEET TRANSFERRING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES MarchlO, 1931.

13 1923 l1 Sheets-Sheet' Original Filed Oct.

` i QA ATTORNEYS March lo, 1931. C, F, R001 1,795,971

SHEET TRANSFERRIVNG MECHANISM FOR P RNTING PRESSES Original Filed Oct. 13, 1923 l1 Sheets-Sheet 10 Charles f Foo ATTORNEYS lBY March l0, 1931.

c. F. Roo-r SHEET TRANSFERRING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING' PRESSES l1 Sheets-Sheet 11 Original Filed Oct. 13 1923 ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 105, 1931 tossica CHARLES F. ROOT, on CLEVELAND, oi-iro, assiettes. fro Tian CHANDLER a PRICE CoM- PANY, on cLnvi-inenn, eine, consonantes sirio SHEET-TRANSFERRXNG MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES Application filed Gctonej.' l5, '19723, Serial No. 668,287. Renewed February 3, 1930.

Y The present improvements relate more particularly to sheet feeding and delivery mechanism adapted for use primarily with socalled Gordon or platen printing presses.

One object of the invention is to provide' a mechanism of the character referredto that may be readily attached to existing presses with little or no alteration in their structure and that, when attached or installed, will not unduly encumber the press or be in the way of the operator. The mechanism is designed to pick up and transfer the sheets, both in feeding the same to the platen and in subsequently removing the same therefrom, by pneumatic suction, and the invention has as a further object the control of such suction conjointly with the movement of the picker iin-gers or sucker tips so as to locate the sheets accurately on the platen of the press. Other features of improvement relate tothe means provided for elevating the stack of blanlr sheets as the latter are gradually removed by the feeding mechanism, means for collecting and retaining in an orderly staal;k the printed sheets as they are delivered from the platen, and numerous details of construction that form part of or appertain to theV sheet feeding and delivery mechanisms proper. l

Claims to such delivery mechanism have been required to be divided out and are presented in m se arate a plication iiled De? cember 9, 1930, Serial No. 501,130.-

To the accomplishment ofthe foregoing and related ends, the invention, then, consists i of the means hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims, the lannexed drawings and the following descrip` tion setting forth in detail certain mechanism embodying the invention, such disclosed means constituting, however, but one of various mechanical. forms in which the principle ofthe invention may be used.

ln said annexed drawings Fig. l is a plan View showing my improved sheet feeding and delivery mechanism as attached to a press of the type hereinbefore referred to; 2 is a front elevation of such mechanismand press; Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the same as viewed fromthe left in Figs. l and 2; Fig. l is a side elevation of the sheet feeding mechanism and table whereon the blank sheets to be fed are supported, as viewed from the left in Figs. l and 2, the sheet delivery mechanism not appearing; F ig.-5 is a front elevation of such sheetr feeding mechanism and table, the scale of such ligure being somewhat larger than that 'of the preceding figures and the angle at which the f parts are viewed being slightly different from that of 2; Fig. Gis a plan view of such feeding mechanism and table by themselves on a scale corresponding-with that of Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a vertical section through an ele ment of the feeding mechanism designed to preliminarily separate the topmost sheet from the ystack the plane of the section being indicated by the line, 7 7, Fig. 6; Fig. 8 is a section on a parallel plane of such sheet separating device, the plane of thel section being indicated by the line 8 8, Fig. 6; Fig. 8a is a transverse section of one of the parts appearing in Fig. 8, as indicated bythe section line Sri-8a thereon; Fig. 9 is a vertical secs tion of the mechanism whereby such sheet platen, the plane of such section being indi# cated by the line 1 0-l0, 10a; 10a isfa horizontal section of such element, the plane ofthe section being indicated by the line 10a-00, Fig. l0; Fig. 102) is a verticalV section of such element at right anglesto the plane of Fig. l0, as indicated by thev line 10b-+106 thereon; Fig. l1 is a vvertical section through another element'of such sheet feeding device, the plane of the section being indicated by the line 1l-l1`, Fig. 6; Fig. l2 is a similar section through still another elcment, the plane of the section being indicated by the line 12-l2, Fig. 6; Fig. 12a is a section of the detail at right angles to that of Fig. l2, as indicated by the line (1f-a of Fig. 6; Figs. i3, lll and l5 are vertical sections of different portions of the horizontally extending arm whereby the sheet feeding` device is supported, the planes of such sections being indicated on Fig. 6 by the lines 13-13, and l5-l5, respectively; Fig. 16 is a vertical section through one of a plurality of similar valves provided for controlling the air suction on the sheet separating, sheet feeding and sheet delivery devices, respectively, thc plane of the section being indicated by the line lli-16, Fig. 2; Fig. i7 is a vertical central section through an air blast device associated with the feed table and sheet separ ting device, the plane of the section of said ligure being indicated by the line 1 7-1'? vo Fig. l; Fig. 1S is an elevation of the upper portion of such air blast device, as viewed from the left in Fig. 17 19 is a horizontal section through a valve. detail in the air connection to such air blast device, the plane of the section being indicated by the line lll- 19, Fig. 3; Fig. 20 is a horizontal section of the feed table support and of the mechanism for automatically raising such table, the plane of the section being indicated by the line 20v20, Figs. 2 3; Fig. 21 is a vertical section and elevation of a detail of such table elevating` mechanism; Fig. 22 is a side elevation of the sheet delivery mechanism, as viewed from the left in Figs. l and 2, it being noted that such mechanism is attached to the right side ci the press just as the sheet feeding mechanism is attached t the left; Fig. 28 is a top plan view of the receiving table to which the sheets are transferred by such delivery mechanism from the platen; Fig. 24 is a plan view showing a detail of the construction of such table; Fig; 25 is a ver ical section through such detail, the plane of the section being indicated by the broken line 25 on Fig. 2e; 26 separately illustrates in plan another portion of the detail in question; Fig. 27 is a vertical section showing another constructional detail of the table, the plane of the section being indicated by the line 27-27, Fig. 23; and Figs. 28, 29, 3() and 31, respectively, illustrate in more or less diagrammatic fashion the operaion of the sheet separating device preliminarily to the transfer of a sheet from the stack to the platen by the sheet feeding device. Y

The press illustrated in the drawings and more particularly in Figs. l and 2, only certain portions of such press appearing as necessary in the remaining figures, is of the familiar platen or rGordon type andn-eed not be further described than to note the oscillatorily mountedplaten l on which the sheet requires to be placed preliminarily to being` brought intoV contact with the form by the conjoint movement of such platen and of the opposite bed 2 which carries such form in a suitable chase. Gf the driving mechanism of the press, only the so-called large gear', carried by shaft f-l, is of interest herein, this gear being utilized as the source of power for the operation of the sheet feeding and delivery mechanism. In those ligures, viz., l, 2 and 3, wherein the press is most fully shown, the assumed position of parts is that wherein the form is thus in contact with the sheet on the platen. it this stage in the operation of the press the platen is inclined only slightly from the vertical, but, as is well known, in its sheet receiving position it is rocked into substantially horizontal position, Vas indicated lin dotted outline in Fig. 5. lt is while the platen is in such last mentioned position that the previously printed sheet thereon requires to be removed or delivered from-the press and a fresh blank sheet placedin position on such platen. rl`he time interval for accomplishing these last described operations is necessarily Lriefand it is of course essential that there be no interference between the sheet that is being delivered and the fresh sheet that is being tlns placed on the platen. Furthermore, the sheet feeding anc delivery devices must be so located and moved with respect to the platen andother operative parts of the press as not to interfere with or be caught thereby. A further consideration is that in order to observe the operation of the press and secure ready access to the platen, the space in front of the press must not be obstructed any more thanwhere the press is being fed by hand.

wWiththe last mentioned object in View, as well as to facilitate the operation of the sheet feeding and delivery devices without interfering with each other, l place such devices on opposite sides of the press. Each device comprises a vertical .support disposed laterally adjacent to the platen and table for the stack of sheets, (either the diminishing stack, from which blank sheets are fed to the platen, or the growing stack onto which printed sheets are delivered from the platen), that while located adjacent to the corresponding support, lies beyond the same with reference to said platen, so that approach to the latter is left substantially wholly unobstructed.

TWhile the sheet feeding and delivery devices, as just pointed out,-require to be operated in close unison and certain portions of the combined mechanism co-operatey directly with both devices, it will be a matter of convenience in description to detail the construction of such devices separately, 'including' along therewith of course the corresponding t-ahles, the operation of which is of necessity interrelated with that of the associated device.

rlhe member, which constitutes the main LLL llt

supporting elem-ent of the sheet feeding device, consists of a tubular .shaft or column 5 that is rotatably supported in suitable bear-V ings 6 attached to the left side frame of the press. he upper of these bearings is shown as being thus att-ached directly to such side frame, while the lower, along with the various operative parts now to be described, is carried by supplemental frames or plates '7 and 8 of clamp screws 29.

members 26, the bodies 27 of whicl Lreaevi tliatare adapted to be bolted against the lower portion of such side frame. Said tubular shalt 5, as a matter of fact, is not directly mounted in the bearings 6, just referred to, but lies within a telescoping tube 10 that is, in addition to being rotatable in such bearings, capable or' vertically reciprocable movement therein as woll. This outer tube 10 terminates short of the upper end of the inner tube 5 and the latter likewise extends downwardly beyond said outer tube.

lixedly mounted on the upper end of said tubular shaft 5 is a cap piece 11 provided withv a radially projecting arm 'l2 that teri .lnates in a horizontal angularly related tubular portion 13 (see Figs. 1, l and 6). ltotatably adjustably held in such tubular portion of the cap piece is a tubular extension or hollow shaft 14 .and rotatably mounted in turn in such tubular portion 13 and extension 111 is an inner ltubular shaft 15, the respective ends of the latter' projecting beyond said extension 14 in the one case and beyond such arm portion in the other (see Fig. 14e). A hollow arm 16 is clamped or otherwise ixedly secured to the end ot said inner tubular member 15 which thus projects beyond the tubular support 11, said arm lying at right angles to said mK n ser having oscillatorily mounted in a cross-head bearing 16a at its extremity a tubular shaft 1'?.

As shown in Fig. 15, the ver ical tubular shaft 5 is closed oil or sealed at its upp r end but has a lateral opening; 13 that commi cateswith a passage 19 in the armor brackety 2O and tubular member 10 an opening 2O aligned with such passage 19 and 0i such 'form as to insure con'imunication between the passage and the hollow interior oi the member, irrespective of any oscillatory movement of the latter.` An opening,` 21 of similar character in the transverse .tubular shaft 127 insures communication at all times between the interior of the latter andthe passage in the hollow arm 16. i

The suction tips or fingers 25, shown two in number, form the lower ends tubular are adjustably slidably mounted on a 28, being secured in desired position thereon by ineens Said bar is prefer hollow (for the sake' oit' liOn i A couare or equivalent polygonal c? l as shown in llig. 10, it supper@ i, low and in substantially rectangulr.Y y the arm 16 by means of slide 30 to which is liXedly attached, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, such slide being' loA ,ally movaL long; an arm 31 that is cla ned or otherwi edly secured at one er 17. in the cross-head bearing at t Ye outer end of tubular arm 1G. Short pieces 32 of rubber hose or equivalent tlexible tubing; c nn said tubular shatt 1'? veither directly journaled as aforesaid.

tliat'the only communication with the interior of such shaft and thus with the passages connectino therewith is bi wai oft tubes C J J and 26 to the suction tips 25.

Y llixedly secured to shaft 1'? adjacent one end of bearing` 15a is a short lever arm 35 that connected by means oit a link 36 with another lever arm 3'?, similarly iiredly seeurer` to the outer end of tubular support 141, wherein shaft 15 is journaled, as hereinbeiiore described. The inner end of shaft 15 is provided with a lever arm 33 that is connected by means of a link 39 with the vertically reciprocable outer tubular shaft 10 that forms part of the vertier-.l` support whereon the sheet feeding mecaanism being described is mounted. Reciprocation or" said shalt 10, it accordingly jollows, will serve to rock tubular shaft 15 and thereby to oscillate tubular arm 16, in the free or outer end of which is j ournaled the shaft 17. rlhe latter, however, being connected by means of the linksfand lever just referred to, will have imparted thereto an independent oscillation, the amount of which is determined by the relative lengths and relation of said levers. The arm 31 beingv iiXedly secured to sha'lit 17, as aforesaid, will partake of the latters independent oscillatory movement and due to the fact that it extends reverselyirom its own of oscillation towards the axis oi oscillation of arm 1G, a jack-knife action results. ln other words, when the left end of arm 16 depressed, viewingsame as shown in Fig. 5 for example, the right end of said arm 31 will be depressed at an increased rate and the same is true upon reverse movement of arm 16. f

The slide 30 on am 31, from which the sucker tips are supported, is connected by means or a link l0 with a bracket 41 that'is clampedr or otherwise linedly secured to the cross-head bearing 16a at the outer end of arm 13, in which bearing` tubular shaft 1'? is As best shown in 'l 5, said bracket is formed with an arcuate slot 12, the center line of which intersects the naxis ot said shaft 17, and the corresponding,`

endet` said link l10 may be pivotally secured in any desired position in said slot by means of a clamp screw 4-3 or like device. VVhemas shown in 5, such link end'is thus secured to bracket l0 in co-axial alicnment with said shaft, there will be no movement of slide 30 lt will be understood oi` ycourse 'that shaft 1'? is closedat both ends and lli) along arm 31 incidentally to oscillation of shaft 17. However, upon shifting the point of a itachment of such link end towards one end or the other of slot 4t2, a differential niovement will be imparted to the slide whenever the shaft is oscillated by reason of the eccentric relation which such link end then occupies with respect to the axis of said shaft l?.

ln the position of parts shown in Fig. 5, where the sheet feeding device is poised over the feed table preliminarily to the presentation to the sucker tips of a sheet from such ie arcuate slot l2 in bracket al is de- --e. to be concentric Vith respect to the i' pivotal attachment of link 40 with A cordingly, there will be no movement of said slide'incidentall to the dropping of the sucker tips or the raising thereof e the device is in the position referred to. ere is likewise no such shifting movement of the slide incidentally to the transfer' of the sheet to the platen, i. e, incidentally to the movement of the sheet feeding device from the position shown in full lines in said ligure to that shown in dotted outline, where, as there illustrated, the clamp screw a3 that secures the outer end of said link to such slot co-axial with tubular shaft l?. However, if the point of attachment lies to one side or the other of such coaxial position, then the rocking of the shaft will either draw the slide towards the tube or move it away therefrom as the device moves to such dotted, sheet-depositing position. As a result of the foregoconstruction it will be seen that the sucker tips always start from a predetermined position or line on the table and so are adapted to pick up successive sheets from the stack resting on such table at predetermined disfroin the corresponding edge thereof. However, as the sheet is thereupon trans ferred to the platen the sucker tips may be shifted so to carry such sheet a greater or less distance 'than that through which the device as a whole is moved incidentally to the oscillation of its support about the vertical axis defined by telescoping shafts 5 and l0.

l thus do away with any necessity for shifting the location of the stack of blank sheets since by the adjustment in question such sheets may be delivered at anydesired position, within limits, longitudinallyV of theY platen, i. e., with respect to the median line thereof. Otherwise stated, the sheet will be deposited on the platenv with itsY forward edge in contact with the usual gauge pins eX- actly where it is to rest during the subsequent printing operation, Transverse alignnient of the sheet on the platen is secured by properly locating the stack of sheetson the table transversely of the sheet feeding device,

as will be readily understood. ln order, however, to take care of a varying thickness in the pad with which the platen is provided, or, in other words, to bring the sucker tips into a plane over such platen removed just the l roper distance therefrom to deposit the sheet and allow necessary clearance for the return movement'of the tips and to avoid undue pressure thereof against the platen pad, the additional adjustment shown in lfig. 12a is provided. rlhis adjustment consists of an eccentric bearing l5 in the pivotal connection one end of the carrier link 3G which is adapte-d to vary slightl the angular relation of lever arms and 3'?. .fr clamp nut t6 serves to secure such bearing in selected position, this position being readily ascertained by swinging the device over the platen and allowing the sucker tips to drop thereon, and n. sing or lowering the same slightly by ating such bearing before it is locked to -ever arm 37. Vfhe feed table consists primarily of a flat, horizontally disposed plate 50, preferably rectangular form as shown (Figs. l and that, as previously indicated, is located i jacent to the verticaltelescoping shafts v5 and l0, whereby the sheet feeding device is supported and operated, and beyond such shafts with reference to the platen. The median line of the table may incline inwardly at a slight anale, as shown, to the median line of the platen or press but should leave the approach to the platen substantially unobstructed for the reason hereinbefore eX- plained. ylhe horizontally extending tubular arm 14, by which the sheet feeding device properris carried, will lie parallel with such median line of the table when such device is positioned to pick up a sheet from the table, and the arcuate path of movement of such support and thus of the device from the position in question, shown in full lines in Fig. G, to the sheet-depositing position, shown in dotted outline in the same figure, will of course be decreased by the amount of such angle of inclination of the median line of the table to that of the platen.

The table is carried on the upper end of a shaft 5l vthat is vertically movable in a tubular housing 52 fiXedly attached to the plate 8 that forms one of the frame elements whereby the sheet feeding mechanism is secured to the adjacent side frame of the press. Said housing also serves as a support for the table elevating mechanism, which includes a rack 53Vdirectly cut or otherwise fixed to one side of shaft 5l and a pinion 5e that meshes with said rack, said pinion being mounted on a transverse spindle 55 journaled in Vsuitable bearings in said housing 52. Freely rotatably mounted on the forwardly projecting end of said spindle, as best shown in lllig. 20, is a worm gear 56 that is adapted to be normally clutched to said spindle by means of a disk 57 keyed on the latter and having limited longitudinal movement withY to enter selected ones of said holes.

is provided with a knurled handle 6G where- E anism just described above.

respect thereto, the outer face of said gear being formed with a circular series of holes 58 and the juxtaposed face of said disk being provided with one or more pins 59 adapted The disk by it may be pulled longitudinally outwardly against compressionspring 6l so as to dissuch pin or pins from the holes in the thereupon by rotation of said hanearand O a: HF

dle tno spindle no may be rotated independently of the gear to raise or lower the shaft l, and thus the table, in order to initially adjust the vertical position of the latter.

Journaled in suitable bearings 62 attached to or formino` a part of the housing 52 is a second spindle 63 that llies at right angles to spindle and directly below the same, such spindle carrying a worm 64 that meshes with worm gear 56 and is adapted, when the latter is clutched to said spindle 55 through the medium of clutch plate 57, to rotate said last ymentioned spindle and thus actuate shaft 5l. Said spindle atk its inner or righthand end, as viewed in Fig. 2, is equipped with knurled handle 65 by means of which it may be manually vrotated when desired,-

, but normally rotation thereof is designed to be secured through automatically controlledA mechanism driven by the press, the portion of such mechanism immediately associated with the spindle consisting of a ratchet wheel 66 and a pawl 67 that is pivotally attached to one arm of a pawl carrier 68 oscill latorily mounted on said spindle adjacent such ratchet wheel. The disposition of such pawl and of the teeth on the ratchet wheel is such that the former is adapted to operatively engage the latter upon oscillatory i movement in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 4, such movement being derived from a lever 70 oscilla-torily mounted on a shaft 7l, such lever being connected by means ofA a link 72 with a second arm on the pawl carrier 68.

rlhe manner in which the lever 70 is periodically oscillated upon shaft 7l will be described later in connection with the general description of the driving connections between the various parts of the feeding mechanism and the. press. However, such oscillation of the shaft and consequent oscillation of the pawl carrier does not necessarily result in actuation of the table elevating mech- In other words, engagement of the pawl 67 with the ratchet wheel 66 is controlled by the absolute height of the upper surface of the stack of blank sheets resting` on the table 50, so that the table will only be elevated as necessary to maintain such surface at the proper elevation and thereby present the topmost sheet on the stack in position to Abe picked up by the sucker tips 25 of the sheet feeding device.

@e Such control of the table elevating mecha-4 nism is derived through a separatepdevice v associated with the table whereby the topmost sheet of the stack resting thereon is separated from such stack preliminarily to being thus picked up by such sucker tips. This sheet separating device will accordingly be described nextv As best shown in Figs. 5 and 6, a frame 75, lying adjacent and substantially parallel with the rear edge of table 50, is oscillatorily supported at its one end about a pivotal axis 76 in a bracket arm 77 that projects from a xed tubular support 7 8 located intermediately between the vertical telescoping shafts 5 and l0 and the shaft 5l whereon the table is supported. Said frame 75 lies entirely clear of the table but carriesat its `forward end a transversely disposed rod or bar 79, preferably of square or other polygonal cross-section, that extends longitudinally of the table. Such bar in fact lies adjacent to and parallel with the side' of the table thatis directed towards theplaten and extends substantially entirely across the table in the direction indicated. rlhe end of such bar adjacent frame 75 is oscillatorily secured thereto about an axis parallel with the axis 76 of said frame by being attached in offset relation to a short spindle 80 journaled in such fram-e end. A. coil spring 8l, connected with said spindle 8O and with the frame, tends normally to rotate the spindle and thus to rock the bar 79 in a clockwise di-` rection, as viewed in Fig. 9.

Depending from the inner end of the spindle and attached to the corresponding end of the bar is a lever arm that is equipped at its lower endwith a roller 86, as best shown in Figs. 3 and 4, and mounted on the bracket 6, wherein telescoplng shafts 5 and j l0 are journaled, or to other fixed point, is a` cation is such as normally to retain the bar in substantially unchanged rotative position with relation to the plane of the table, but sait bar is nevertheless left free to be rotated or oscillated about the axis of spindle 8O in a counter-clockwise direction by special means therefore provided.

vertically, reciprocablyrheld in the tubular support to which frame 75 is oscillatorily attached is a. plunger 90. Such plunger is provided at its upper end with a transversely extending plate 91 wherewith the lower end of a set screw 92, that is mounted in the frame at a point intermediate` of its ends, is adapted to contact. The normal angular relation of the frame 'to such plate, and thus to the plunger 90, may be varied by rotating such set screw, as will be readily understood, a

lock nut 93 serving to secure the set screw in desired position. 1t will be noted that by reason of the character of the connection just described, reciprocation of the plunger is effective only to raise the frame or to oscillate same upwardly abo t its axis 70, the downward movement of the frame being under gravity. As will be explained later, such downward movement in operation is limited by the height of the upper surface of the stack of blank sheets resting on table 50.

A bracket 95, adjustably clamped to vertical tubular shaft 5, carries an arm 96 tha t is angularly adjustable about an axis parallel with that of said shaft and is equip ed with a horizontally disposed roller 97. properly adjusting the angular position of thebracket and of such roller arm 9G, the roller 97 is caused to strike against the lever arm that depends from the inner end of bar 7 9 and thereby swing such arm in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 5, the roller 86 on the lower end of such arm being temporarily swung clear of stationary vcam S7 wherewith it normally contacts. As a result of the action of said roller arm 96, the bar 79 will be oscillated in the same counter-clockwise direction and this oscillation, it will further be noted, may be correlated as desired with the oscilla-tion of the horizontally extending tubular support that serves as a carrier for the sheet feeding device, such support being mounted on the upper end of the same shaft 5 to which saidV arm 96 is clamped.

The lower end of plunger is pivotally connected with the outer end of a lever 100 that is oscillatorily mounted on the same shaft 71 that constitutes the pivotal axis of pawlactuating lever 70. Angularly adjustably secured to such inner end of lever 100 is an arm 101 that constitutes along therewith in effect a bell crank, such arm extending upwardlpT and inwardly into position to strike on occasion a lug 102 on a counter-weighted lever 103. rlhe counterweight 104 on such lever serves merely to maintain the latter with the ,i operative parts, that are Connected with forward end, in normal balanced condition.

These parts include, as best shown in Figs. 2

and 4, a member 105 in the form of a bell crank oscillatorily mounted on an axis 106 below ratchet wheels 66. The horizontally extending arm of such member is couimerweighted so as normally to cause thetransfersely slotted upper end 107 of` said member to project across into the path of the trailing end of pawl 67 which, as heretofore explained, serves to actuate said ratchet wheel, with the result that the pawl is kept from engaging the teeth of the ratchet wheel and so moves idly back and forth. Vhen, however, the weighted arm of said member 105 is raised, such slotted end 107 will be moved out of the path of the -pawl and the latter thus left free to engage and rotate the ratchet wheel through one or more part revolutions. A pin 108, fixed in an adjacent portion of the frame, lies in the slot in such end 107 and so serves to limit the oscil latory movement of the member in question.

rl`he counterbalancing of the parts last described, including plunger 90 and levers 100 and 101 directly associated therewith, is such that unless the weight of frame 75 is allowed to bear on the plate 91, attached to the upper end of said plunger 90, the counterweighted bell crank member 105 will remain with its upper end in position to prevent effective operation of the pawl 67. However, it will be noted that the plungerV is free to be moved upwardly without disturbing the operative connections between same and said member 105, such upward actuation being derived from a disk cam 110 mounted on a shaft 111 that contacts with a roller 112 on lever arm 100 intermediately of its ends.

Said shaft 111, it may be noted at this point, constitutes the driving means for all of the moving parts of the sheet feeding mechanism as well as of the sheet delivery mechanism, being ournaled in suitable bearings 112 in the lower front portion of the main frame of the press and connected by means of gears 113 with thev large gear 3 of the press (see Fig. 2). A suitable clutch 114 is desirably interposed between such gears and the shaft so that the press may be run independently of the sheet feeding and delivery mechanism when desired.

For the purpose of oscillating the two telescoping vertical tubular shaftsV 5 and 10 whereby the sheet feeding mechanism is supported and operated, as well as for reciprocating said shaft 10, as required in such operation, the following connections are provided between said shafts and drive shaft 111 just referred to, viz z-Near its lower end, a-

cent one of the bearings 6, the inner tubular shaft 5 is provided with a pinion 115 that meshes with a horizontally reciprocable rack bar 116 carried by two links117 attached to the frame at suitable points.' rlhe forward end of said rack bar is provided with a roller 118 that is held in contact with a disk cam 119 on shaft 111 and having the contour best shown in Fig. 3, by means of a tension spring 100 that is connected at one end with an arm radi-ally projecting from the lower end of said shaft 5 and at its other end'to a fixed point on the frame. Similarly near its lower end the outer shaft 10 is provided with a circumferentially grooved collar 125, wherewith engages one end of a bell crank lever 126, pivotally attached at its axis of oscillation to the frame, the other end of said lever carrying a roller 127 that is held in Contact by the weight of said tubular shaft 10 with another disk cam 128 on shaft 111. v

As .a result lof the foregoing construction it will be seen that rotation of shaft 111 will be effective to oscillate the inner vertical tubular shaft 5 at predetermined times and simultaneously to raise and lower the outer tubular shaft 10. rlhe two shafts 5 and 10 are held against relative rotative movement, incidentally to the foregoing, by means of a depending pin 129 secured to the cap 11 on said shaft 5 in parallel relation to said shaft, such pin engaging a radial slot in a laterally projecting lug 130 on the upper end of the outer tubular shaft 10. This connection, however, obviously permits relative longitudinal movement of the two shafts.

As already pointed out, rotation of drive shaft 111 serves, through engagement of cam 110 thereon with roller 112 on lever 100, to raise plunger 90 at stated intervals and oscillation of pawl-actuating lever is derived from still another cam 131'on said shaft 111, such cam engaging with a roller 132 on a lever 133 that constitutes in effect a downward prolongation of lever 70. A Returning to the sheet separating mechanism which is carried by oscillatory frame 75, it will be noted that a series (three, as sho-wn, Fig. 6) of sucker tips 135 is carried by such bar, these tips being of the special form and construction shown in detail in Figs. 7, 8 and 8a. Each, in other words, comprises a body 136 that is adapted to be clamped to the bar 79 in adjusted desired position therealong. Immediately below such body is incorporated a bushing 137 that is provided at one end with an extension 133, Wherewith a section of hose 139 or equivalent flexible tubing may be attached, such bushing interiorly communicating with a chamber 140 in the sucker ktip proper, such chamber being formed with an elongated slot-like opening 141. TheY sucker tips 135, and vthus the slot-like openings 141 therein, lie transversely of the supporting bar 79 and accordingly are so located with respect to the table 50 as to lie at right angles and closely adjacent to the corresponding edge of a stack of sheets resting on such table. The tubes 139 lead to a suction manifold 142 supported adjacent the opposite edge of the table, preferably by means of a vertical tube 143 that is adjustably clamped in a bracket arm 144 so that it may be raised vor lowered as well as adjusted angularly, should occasion arise. rlhe mann-er in which suction is applied through such pipe 143 and manifold 142 to the suction tips 135, as well as the timing thereof, will be explained later in connection with the description of the General operation of the mechanism, However, it may be noted at this point that when the suction tips 135 are resting on top of a stack of sheets on table 50 they will, if the upper level of such stack be sufficiently elevated, serve to support the bar 79 and thus oscillatory frame without the plate 91, carried by vertically reciprocable plunger 90, necessarily contacting with set screw 92. In other words, under the conditions stated, said plunger will'be effective only to raise oscillatory frame 75 and with it bar 79 and the sucker tips carried thereby, and thereupon to drop the same until such sucker tips rest on the stack. In such case further downward movement of the plunger, unassisted by the weight of oscillatory frame 75 and attached parts, will, as previously described, be ineffective to release pawl 67 from the shrouding action of member 105. On the other hand, whenever, due to removal of successive sheets from the top of the stack, the level of the latter falls sufliciently so that oscillatory frame 75 bears sufhciently on plunger 90 to cause lever 101 to kicksuch shroud element out of the way of the pawl, the latter will begin to raise the table and thus the top level of the stack until the previous condition again obtains.

Associated with the sheet separating device just described is an air blast device, shown in detail in Fig. 17, the function of which is to assist the sucker tips 135 to separate the topmost sheet from the rest yof the stack and to prevent separation of more than such one sheet and the picking up thereof by the sucker ips of the sheet feeding device. This device comprises essentially a tubular air nozzlev150 that is formed with a narrow, vertically disposed, discharge oriiice 151, such nozzle being suitably supported so as to lie immediately in front of the stack' of sheets on table 5() (see Fig. 5) at approximately the same level as the top of such stack and preferably midway between the ends of the stack as regarded from the side in question. Such side of the stack is maintained in proper vertical alignment by means of two angular, vertically upstanding guides 152, adjustably secured to a transverse supporting plate 153 by means of clamp screws 154` and the sameplate 153, or rather the bracket 153e, to which such plate is in turnattached, serves as a convenient means of support for the air blast device, including nozzle 150 referred to. To this end such nozzle is attached in rectangular relation to the upper end of vertical tube 155 that is oscillatorily supported about a transverse axis formed by a pin or stud 156 journaled in a forwardly projecting lug 157 on said bracket 153e. Associated with the pin is a clamp 158 whereby the tube 155, and therewith the nozzle 150, may be raised or lowered. At a point just below the nozzle said tube is formed with a series of apertures 159 and a telescoping sleeve 160, slidably mounted on the tube and provided with a corresponding series of apertures 161, is adapted either to close such rst-named apertures or leave the same partially or wholly open as desired, thereby graduating the blast of air delivered through the nozzle 150 to suit individual conditions encountered in the stack.

Air is supplied under suitable pressure to tube 155 by means of a hose connection 162 secured to said tube near the lower end thereor.

The air line through which air is thus sup.- indes, in addition to a section of hose le tubing 163, that is attached to said connection 162, a horizontally extending pipe section 1611 (see Fig. 3) that lies some distance above shaft 111 and is provided with a serios of v-"it openings 165, as best shown in Fig. 19. These openings 165 are adapted to be alternately opened and closed by means of a sleeve 166 slidably vfitted to such pipe section and formed with openings 167 adapted to register with said openings 165. @ne of the links 117, by means of which the rack bar 116 is carried, is provided with an upward extension 168 that has a loose connection 119 as by pin and slot with said sleeve, whereby oscillation of said lever is effective to reciprocate the latter. When the openings 167 register with the openings fective pressure will be transmitted to the line beyond and thus to nozzle 150; in other words, he latter will deliver blast of air against the stack of sheets on table 50 only when the sleeve 166 is moved to close the openings 165.

Carried by nozzle 150 with its bristles directed in the saine direction as the discharge opening 151 in said nozzle is a small rectangular brush 170 (Figs. 3, 5 and 17 By vertical adjustment of tube 155 the nozzle with such brush is brought to an elevation corresponding with the top of thestaclr of sheets on table 50 and when such tube is rocked inwardly, i. e., towards the stack, the bristle. of the brush are intended to graze the edges of the uppermost sheets on such stack. Such inward rocking movement of the tube, and thus of the brush, is induced by a` tension spring 171 attached at one end to the tube above its pivotal axis 156 and at its other end to plate 153, or any equivalent means, a set screw 172 in the opposed face of such plate or bracket 153e serving as an adjustable stop to limit such inward movement, so that the brush will press against the edges of the sheets composing the stack with ust the right amount of pressure and no more. The rocking movement of the tube in the opposite dir-ection, i. e., to swing the brush out of Contact with the sheets, is derived from a cam eXtension 173 secured to the upper end of pawlactuating lever 7 0, such cam being disposed to engage a downwardly projecting roller 174 on an arm 175 that is adjustably secured to the lower end of tube 155. This roller is long enough to take care of any longitudinal adjustment of the tube in its oscillatory mounting and the cam 173 is so formed (see Fig. 20) that every time the lever 70 moves rearwardly, the roller 174 will be displaced inwardlv and therebyV swing the upper end of the tube with brush 170 outwardly.

As previously stated, the sheet delivery device is located on the opposite side of the press from the sheet feeding mechanism which includes the sheet feeding device proper, the sheet sepa-rating device and the table with its elevating mechanism hereinbefore described. Such delivery device (see Figs. 1, 2 and 22) comprises primarily a radially projecting tubular arm 180 of telescoping construction that is carried at the upper end of a vertical tubular shaft 181, being secured in desired angular adjustment about `he aXis of said shaft by means of a suitable clamp 182. rl`he interior of said arm communicates freely with the interior of such shaft and similarly angularly adj ustably secured to the free end of said arm is a tubular extension 183 that is provided with two or more integral sucker tips 184. Such extension is adapted to be angularly adjusted about its own axis and the point vof attachment thereof to the outer extremity o f arm 180 may furthermore be vertically adjusted, as need not be described in detail. Y

rllhe adjustment ofthe several parts just described is designed to besuch that when the shaft 181 is swung inwardly, i. e., in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 1, to a predetermined limiting position and then lowered, the sucker tips 184 on tubular arm extension 183 will be brought into contact with a sheet on the platen in the open position of the latter, this being the same position occupied by the platen when it receives a fresh sheet to be printed. Suction being applied through tubular shaft 181, arm 180 and such extension 183 of the latter, the sheet thus in contact with the suction tips will be picked up by the latter and by a compound raising and swinging movement of shaft 181 in a direction the reverse of that j ust referred to, such sheet will be carried in a counterclockwise direction across large gear 3 of the press into position to be dropped onto a table 185 provided for the purpose. This table is omitted from Fig. 1 in order not to obscure he underlying parts, but as shown in Figs. 2 and 22, it is carried by a hollow shield 185e of outwardly curved or rounded contour that is attached to the adjacent side frame of the press and serves to cover Jdie adjacent upper portion of large gear 3 so as to keep the sheet from coming in Contact with the latter. Said `sheet receiving table preferably inclines upwardly and outwardly, as shown in Fig. 2, and in connection therewith means are provided to align the successive sheets with those previously deposited so as to form a compact stack thereof. rlhese means, as illustrated in detail in Figs. 23 to 27, inclusive, include an inner guide 186 in the form of a longitudinally extending plate that is adjustably located approximately in alignment with the corresponding edge of the successive sheets as deposited by the delivery device.L In addition to such guide plate 186, the position of, which will not be changed for a given setting of the n'iechanism, three other relatively movable guides 190 are mounted on the plate 185,

each being adj ustably 'attached by means of a clamp 191 to a bar or rod 192. As clearly kshown in Fig. 23, two of said rods lie in parallel relation to the inner guide plate 186 but extend in opposite directions rfrom a transverse median line on said plate, while the third rod 192 lies substantially on such median line, or in other words at right angles to the inner guide plate 186. The outer ends of said rods are suitably guided in apertured lugs 193 on the corresponding edges of the plate, while their inner ends have a loose pivotal connection, asshown in Figs. 24 and 25, with an oscillatory disk 194 suitably secured to the table below the surface thereof. Rectilinear movement of the rods 192 is insured by means of pins 195 on the inner ends thereof that are guidedin slots 196 formed in a plate'197, the same pins engaging approximately radial slots 198 in disk 194 yto formthe pivotal connection just referred to. rEhe disk is provided with a downwardly projecting central stud 199 to which is'at tached a lever arm 200 that is vin turn conf nected by means of a link 201 with van open ating arm 202 on the same tubular shaft 181 that carries the sheet delivery device. A coil searing 208 surrounds stud 199 and is connected at one end to said lever 200 and at the other end tothe bearing 204 on the bottom of the plate or table 185 wherein such stud is j ournaled, such spring tending normally to rotate the stud and thus disk 194 in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in Figs.`

23 and 24.` whereby the three guides190 are moved inwardly.

direction to deliver a sheet from the platen onto the table 185, as hereinbefore described,

will at the same time serve,through the medium of the connections between said shaft".`

and the guides 190,-t0 move said guides outwardly from their normal positions as determined by the setting of the clamps L181 onv rods 192. A sheet upon being releasedby the delivery device may accordingly settle down freely on the table or on the stack of.'

However, oscillation of tubular shaft 181 in a counter-clockwise` `vvTubular shaft 181is ysupported in brackets 205 attached to the adjacent side frame of the pressin much the same way as the two telescoping verti'caltubular shafts 5 and 10 are attached to the opposite side of the press, said shaft 181 being both oscillatory and vertically reciprocable` in the rbearings thus provided, as will bev understood. For the purpose of imparting 'such oscillatory and vertically reciprocable movements to shaft 181, means siinilarto those employed with shafts 5 and 10 are' utilized. (see Fig. 22), said shaft is provided near its loweryend with an elongated pinion 206 that is adapted to remain in mesh, despite the vertical reciproca-tory movement of the shaft, with a transversely reciprocable rack 207. l allelllinks 208 from the side frame of the press and is actuated byfmeans of a roller 209 on its forward end that engages with a laterally grooved cam 210 mounted on the same shaft 111 that carries the'cams where-k by the sheet feeding device and associated mechanisms are operated. Adjacent said cam 210 is another cam 211 wherewith a roller 212 on one end Vof a bellcrank lever 213 rIhus f rlhe latter is carried by two parengages, the otherarm of said lever being provided with a fork 214 that engages with a circumferentially grooved collarf215 fixed to saidshaft 181. The cams 210 and 211'will.V

of course beso laidv out as to produce a resultlant swingingV and rising or falling movement hereinbefore described, but also avoid interfering with the movement of the; sheet feedling device which must necessarily be, at least in the major part, simultaneous with such movement of the delivery device.Y In other words, a fresh sheet has to be picked up by `the latterV from table 50 and :started towards vthe' platen at the same time that. the previouslyy printed sheet is being picked up from the latter and started toward the delivery table 185.

10or Y Shaft 181 is provided at its lowervend with a hose connection 216 whereby it may be connected with a suitable suction Vproducing device. vconnection 217 provided at the lower endk ofthe tubular shaft 5 that carries the sheet It willbe noted that a similar hose feeding ydevice wherein suction is likewise utilized in order to pick up and transfer a sheet of paper from the feed table to the platen; while, as explained in the course of the'de'scriptionof'the sheetseparating de-` vice that is associated -with the feed table, the suction line requires to be connected with "pipe 148. In the case of the air blast device7 on the contrary, air under pressure requires to be supplied to pipe 164. .n f j While the airsuction and air pressure for the four connections in question may be de- 

